DANNY Hunt will not get a better chance to reclaim his Bolton Golf Championship as he is on home turf at Great Lever and Farnworth which starts on Saturday.

Reigning champion Danny has five-time winner Gareth Hastie back in the field to contend with after missing last year’s event.

He is hoping to make it six and close the gap on the legendary Jack Taylor, who is out on his own with 10 titles.

More than 70 of Bolton’s top golfers will begin their bid to be crowned Bolton’s best golfer in the tournament which has been staged annually since 1913.

Battle commences on Saturday and concludes with the final next Thursday.

The qualifying 36 holes will be played at Great Lever and Farnworth on Saturday with the eight best scores going forward to the quarter-final on Tuesday.

The semi-finals will take place the following night and the final on Thursday.

Liam Ball – who beat Hastie in the 2014 final is among those likely to be in the running, as are Aaron Harper, Anthony Stirling and Josh Ashton.

Harper and Stirling had excellent outings in the recent Lancashire Amateur Championship. Stirling finished 10th in a field of 138, a performance that earned him a call-up to the Lancashire squad last weekend.

A number of previous Bolton champions are also in the running, including 1995, 1997 and 2009 winner and last year’s beaten finalist Tim Philbin of Hindley Hall, Deane’s Andy Runciman, who won in 2001, and 2004 winner Steve Bryan of Old Links.

Great Lever captain Colin Dickinson said: “We are proud to be hosts of the BGA Championship 2017 in the club’s centenary year and I am particularly pleased the event has fallen in my term of office.”

The event is one of Bolton biggest sporting traditions and remains one of the high points in the town’s sporting calendar.

Championship chairman Clive Hastie said: “The magic of the BGA Championship still has great appeal for all our top golfers.

“Great Lever officials and ground staff have played their part in honing the course and we all look forward to a rewarding championship.”

Originally called “Bolton’s Best Golfer”, George Bell won six championships from 1922 to 1928 to claim the Challenge Bowl Trophy donated by Prestons the Jewellers in the event organised by Bolton Golf Club’s Fred Marshall.

BGA Championship draw

7.30am and 12.30pm: D Durose (3c) Breightmet, T Philbin (3c) Hindley Hall, A Runciman (0c) Deane.

7.40am and 12.40pm: M Green (3c) Breightmet, G Walker (3c) Deane.

7.50am and 12.50pm: B McSorley (2c) Deane, C Hayes-Smith (3c) Turton, S Bryan (2c) Bolton Old Links.

8am and 1pm: G Hastie (-1c) Bolton, B Killey (3c) Deane, J Whittaker (2c) Bolton.

8.10am and 1.10pm: A Stirling (0c) Harwood, Matthew Buckley (1c) Bolton, J Greenhalgh (2c) Bolton.

8.20am and 1.20pm: M Taylor (2c) Bolton Old Links, C Lowe (3c) Hindley Hall, A Gibbins (3c) Turton.

8.30am and 1.30pm: D Wright (5c) Chorley, D Turner (2c) Dunscar, D Monks (1) (2c) Bolton.

8.40am and 1.40pm: A Gandy (2) Turton, K Bowker (1c) Bolton Old Links, D Hunt (2c) Great Lever & Farnworth.

8.50am and 1.50pm: J Wiggans (1c) Chorley, N Hunter (2c) Breightmet, T Cummings (3c) Dunscar.

9am and 2pm: J Ashton (1c) Bolton, A Harper (-2c) Bolton Old Links, L Ball (0c) Hindley Hall.

9.10am and 2.10pm: A Pilling (4c) Deane, Nick Bell-Tye (5c) Bolton Old Links, Steve Hunt (5c) Harwood.

9.20am and 2.20pm: Cameron Heath (6c) Harwood, J Dempsey (3c) Turton, J Starr (5c) Deane.

9.30am and 2.30pm: J Winward (4c) Chorley, P Bridge (6c) Great Lever & Farnworth, D Marsh (3c) Bolton Old Links.

9.40am and 2.40pm: D Buckingham (5c) Hindley Hall, I Meeds (5) Harwood, T Fallon (5) Westhoughton.

9.50am and 2.50pm: I Charnock (6c) Dunscar, A Whealing (6c) Great Lever & Farnworth, J Relph (3c) Deane.

10am and 3pm: L Hulme (5c) Great Lever & Farnworth, D Hilton (6c) Deane, S Callaghan (2c) Dunscar.

10.10am and 3.10pm: J McCawley (6c) Great Lever & Farnworth, C McPhillips (1c) Turton, J Sleigh (4c) Hindley Hall.

10.20am and 3.20pm: B Leech (6c) Westhoughton, S Page (6c) Breightmet, A Miller (5c) Bolton Old Links.

10.30am and 3.30pm: G Edwards (1c) Chorley, M Taylor (1c) Hindley Hall, M Latham (2c) Hart Common.

10.40am and 3.40pm: D Hemingway (3c) Chorley, D Birch (6c) Hart Common, J Knowles (8c) Dunscar.

10.50am and 3.50pm: M Grundy (4c) Dunscar, J Sabrine (4c) Deane, D Edwards (0c) Chorley.

11am and 4pm: D Jones (2c) Bolton Old Links, M Jones (5c) Bolton Old Links, A Coop (5c) Breightmet.

11.10am and 4.10pm: S Aspey (7) Hindley Hall, A Williams (3) Deane.

11.30am and 4.30pm: S Ling (2c) Chorley, N Lowe (3c) Chorley, N Hibbs (4c) Hindley Hall.